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Ugly Ways (1995)

Ugly Ways (1995)

Book Info

Genre
Rating
3.97 of 5 Votes: 1
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ISBN
0156000776 (ISBN13: 9780156000772)
Language
English
Publisher
mariner books

About book Ugly Ways (1995)

I thought I was going to enjoy this book. It's well-written enough to keep me reading to the end--I usually stop reading books that I don't enjoy.This is a story about three thirty-something sisters who return to the small town of Mulberry GA to attend their (crazy? controlling) mother's funeral. It's about their relationship with their mother and each other and all the pain and anger they have about the way they were raised. I kept reading this book because I was really hoping for some closure, or forgiveness, or growth, or something to dispel the anger that this book is filled with, but it just seemed to end the way it started.I think there is a sequel to this book but I can't imagine that it answers any of these issues. I'll have to read other people's reviews to find out.

I first read ugly ways some years back, when it was originally published (in what I now think of as the "golden renaissance" of African American women's literature). I have re-read, as a part of my book group, and was reminded of what a talented writer Ansa is - and left wondering why she didn't write/publish more! Entertaining, with well-conceived characters, the book offers an excellent and often humorous portrayal of families, the deep complexities of sibling relationships, and what happens when one partner in a relationship upends the apple cart. Mudear and her daughters are worth visiting, and re-visiting.

Do You like book Ugly Ways (1995)?

Ugly Ways chronicles the experience of three sisters in the wake of their mother's death. Mudear, as they have referred to her since childhood, has always been a figure which inspired her daughters with mixed emotions - fear, longing, gratitude, inadequacy, hatred. Now her spirit lingers on, ripe with criticism of her daughters and their "ugly ways" as they scramble to put together her funeral. It's a story about the bruise left by family, about stereotypes, and about the haunting within our own souls. Anyone who has ever had relatives can relate to this vivid and honest novel.Reviewed by:KristenClass of 2010
—Hickman Students

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